Glossary
Audience
The audience is the intended reader or listener of a text, whose characteristics influence an author's rhetorical choices and tone.
Example:
When writing for a scientific audience, an author would adopt a formal and objective tone, using precise terminology.
Author's Background
An author's background includes their life experiences, beliefs, and affiliations, which can provide insight into their perspective and choices.
Example:
Knowing the author's background as a former environmental activist helps explain their passionate and critical tone regarding industrial pollution.
Details
Details are specific facts, observations, or examples an author includes or excludes to shape the reader's understanding and perception.
Example:
The author's choice to include details about the crumbling paint and overgrown garden emphasized the house's decay.
Diction
Diction refers to an author's specific word choice, which significantly influences the tone and meaning of a text.
Example:
The poet's diction, employing words like 'whispering,' 'fragile,' and 'ephemeral,' established a delicate and fleeting mood.
Historical Context
Historical context refers to the social, political, and cultural conditions of the time period in which a text was created, which can influence its meaning and tone.
Example:
Understanding the historical context of the Civil Rights Movement helps explain the urgent and defiant tone of Martin Luther King Jr.'s speeches.
Imagery
Imagery is the use of descriptive language that appeals to the five senses, creating vivid mental pictures for the reader.
Example:
The passage's imagery of 'sun-drenched fields' and 'the sweet scent of honeysuckle' evoked a nostalgic and peaceful feeling.
Repetition
Repetition is a rhetorical device involving the intentional reuse of words, phrases, or ideas for emphasis, rhythm, or to create a particular effect.
Example:
The speaker's powerful use of repetition in the phrase 'We must act now, we must act together, we must act decisively' underscored the urgency of their message.
Rhetorical Strategies
Rhetorical strategies are the techniques and choices an author makes to persuade, inform, or entertain their audience, including elements like diction, imagery, and syntax.
Example:
The speaker employed various rhetorical strategies, such as vivid anecdotes and emotional appeals, to sway the crowd to their cause.
Syntax
Syntax is the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences, influencing pace, emphasis, and tone.
Example:
The long, winding sentences with multiple clauses created a complex and contemplative syntax, mirroring the character's deep thoughts.
Tone
Tone is the author's attitude toward their subject, audience, or both, conveyed through their stylistic choices.
Example:
The author's use of short, declarative sentences and urgent verbs created a tone of immediate alarm.
Tone Shifts
Tone shifts occur when an author's attitude changes within a text, often signaling a change in purpose, argument, or emotional trajectory.
Example:
The essay began with a lighthearted, humorous tone, but a sudden tone shift to somber reflection occurred when discussing the consequences of climate change.
Tone Splits
Tone splits happen when an author expresses one attitude toward the audience while simultaneously conveying a different, often contrasting, attitude toward the subject matter.
Example:
The politician's speech had a seemingly empathetic tone split, addressing the public with concern while subtly mocking their intelligence through veiled sarcasm.